Airell Woodcourt
|Row 6 title = Status: |Row 6 info = Alive. |Row 7 title = Family: |Row 7 info = Bashel Woodcourt (father, deceased) Deidre Woodcourt (mother) Brigid Woodcourt (older sister) Roslyn Woodcourt (older sister) Alastar Woodcourt (older brother) Airic Woodcourt (younger brother) Leria Woodcourt (sister-in-law) Siegrun an Gabhatine (lover) Rowan an Gabhatine (daughter)}} Airell Woodcourt is the younger brother of the Arbor Wardens captain, Alastar Woodcourt and a member of the House of Woodcourt. Knighted as a member of the Arbor Wardens, Airell has continued his brother's pursuit to bridge the gap between the Reachmen and the Galuyn people. He has personally trained as a druid and a keeper of Hyroth, attempting to help work his roots together. His mother, Deidre, is a clanswoman from Wickenden who married a Gilnean knight, as a result, when he was growing up his family was exposed to the Galuyn rituals much more than many at the time. History Airell was the fourth child born to Bashel and Deidre Woodcourt and was known to have been extremely lanky as a child; often not gaining much mass on him despite healthy eating habits. When he was young, Airell's father, Bashel, perished defending him; leaving him somewhat emotionally scarred by the experience. To compound the issue, his mother, Deidre, had an extremely difficult time adapting to life without Bashel. As she was one of the Galuyn, and at the time their kind had not yet been accepted into Gilnean society, Deidre constantly found herself at odds with others whom judged her for her heritage, and in other times, completely lost in a society she had been used to relying on her husband to navigate. As a result, with a heavy heart, she abandoned her family to Highroost; as her eldest Brigid had already been an adult and was capable of raising her younger siblings alongside her brother, Alastar. The loss of both his father and mother had a profound impact on Airell. While the other siblings were wounded, the personal feelings of loss from Bashel compounded into Deidre and left Airell with a deep seeded fear of abandonment, slight paranoia and ultimately a propensity to distance himself emotionally from newer encounters. This carried into his adult life, where his only true companions were that of his family as he constantly distanced himself from others whom would attempt to get close to the young Reachman. After his mother's disappearance, Airell felt a sense of abandonment from his mother, seeking to at least keep her teachings alive by reaching further into the arts of the Galuyn people. This led to a deep reverence for nature and the Old Ways, even during the times of the Reach where it was not as prevalent. Following the Invasion of Gilneas and the Reach's rebirth under acceptance of the Old Ways, Airell became much more open about his practice and attempted to reach out further towards the Galuyn culture, though he was stiffly rebuked by the people whom his mother had come from. Instead, he turned towards his father's side of combat, being that of the blade. A perfectionist by nature, Airell mastered swordsmanship when he was a young adult, eventually taking up his father's blade. When the Arbor Wardens were formed, Airell immediately joined under his brother's banner and took up a small squad of his own. While he was not particularly close to any of his squad mates, his leadership commanded respect and efficiency; even though they were sometimes at odds with one another. Airell's only true kinship came towards the animals he befriended, as their loyalty was not as complex as humans. Ultimately, Airell received a knighting by Lord Derrik Greyfield, making him the second Woodcourt to bare a knighthood in the Arbor Wardens. Feeling as if he'd at least reached something of accomplishment, Airell was content to aid his brother with his endeavors. When the Galuyn progressively began to come deeper and deeper into Gilnean society, Airell reached out to them as well; feeling as if he'd found a piece of his life that had been missing. This progressed until the resurgence of his mother, Deidre, as an enemy on the side of Wickenden. While Alastar had claimed they would not fight their own mother, Airell's faith in the path he had taken in life had finally begun to buckle. During the Siege of Wickenden, Airell felt compelled to his mother's side, and as such, the Wicker King. It was due to the last minute persuasion from the Blades of Greymane that convinced Airell to remain loyal and realize, that supporting the wicker king would not reunite his family and their lost mother. As such, Airell devoted himself to Hyroth and left on a trek of repentance to gather more information about the Galuyn people once the Wicker King was defeated, seeking to unveil the lost knowledge of the clans. He was trained by one of the keepers, Erlend, in the arts of the Skysworn, as well as to control his continually unstable emotional state. While it had not cured him of his paranoia or emotional detachment, the inclusion of figures outside of his family that he could look to for guidance did open Airell up more towards newer encounters, even if he was somewhat prickly at first. .]] This led him to come into contact with Siegrun an Gabhatine, a Galuyn clanswoman from the Gabhatine clan in the Eastern Range, one of the few remaining Oakenborn clans. Enraptured by her unique culture, the two became traveling companions shortly after realizing she had enlisted with the Blades, the two continued to journey alongside one another. Sharing in one adventure after the next, Siegrun quickly went from his best and only friend to his lover, the two sharing a tryst in the woods that would seal them together. Over the span of the coming months, the two journeyed across the Ashen Coast, integrating themselves into several battles and conflicts before finally leaving off on their own to Siegrun's home, Flame's Berth. Having realized that the "Forgespeak" that the Gabhatine used was one of the only surviving examples of Galui, the language of the Galuyn, which could unlock countless lost tomes within the archives of Wickenden, Airell came with Siegrun into the mountain; despite their xenophobic attitude towards outsiders. His Galuyn blood as well as the fact that Siegrun was the daughter of the Clan's main leader, Oisin an Gabhatine, was enough to get him into the mountain and begin his work on a cypher. Life in the mountain, however, was difficult. The Gabhatine routinely made sure to make Airell's life harsher, and Siegrun was under constant pressure by her father to abandon him. When it had become too much, the two departed the mountain. Before doing so, Siegrun had felt compelled to leave her mark within the mountain. An ancient rite of the Runesingers, Siegrun had prophetic dreams that saw the downfall of their people should they remain in the mountain; the smog and degraded conditions making them more and more unhealthy. Siegrun leaving her prophetic warning of the Gabhatine's impending downfall should they remain in the mountain, departed with Airell and the two vowed to return to aid the Gabhatine from their impending fate. As promised, they did just that some months later when earthquakes began to originate from Flame's Berth. Alongside the Blades, Siegrun usurped control over the Gabhatine, awoke the ancient demigods Kol and Sir, and ultimately led her people out of Flame's Berth to the hills below; stating that Flame's Berth would be used for work as it was restored, but no longer for living. Instead, the Gabhatine would live in the long since abandoned Oakenborn villages that their ancestors had once used before they fled into the mountain for safety. Thus began the long process of restoring the Gabhatine lands, establishing rocky contact with the Gilneans whom had been rather heavy handed in their handling of the Gabhatine, and ultimately the shift in their society. Airell refused to abandon Siegrun even as her home demanded her constant presence, becoming one of her key advisors. It became a source of tension between them, as Siegrun's temperamental and hotblooded nature often led to her coming at odds with Airell's more controlled and diplomatic approach. Regardless, Airell acted as a check to Siegrun's poorer qualities in leadership, while highlighting her better features; such as her sincere care for her people and her strategic mind. Life continued to spiral further into the hands of the Gabhatine woman as their relationship blossomed into a pregnancy, with Siegrun announcing to him that they were to bare a child. While initially paranoid, as he was often to do with news he was unprepared for, Airell came into the notion of fatherhood quickly and ultimately doubled his commitment to Siegrun and what would soon be their new family. He remains by her side in the Gabhatine Lands; committed to the idea that where ever life takes him, he will remain with Siegrun to aid him through it, rather than be left abandoned as he had been in his youth. Relationships Airell has held very few relationships in his lifetime, nothing lasting or otherwise impactful however until he met his current lover, Siegrun. Siegrun an Gabhatine A clanswoman from the Gabhatine, Siegrun and Airell met by chance during one of Airell's journeys and became travelling companions. While at first it had seemed to be nothing more than a friendship, over time, the two became closer and closer until finally sharing a tryst with one another in the woods. From there out, the friendship became more carnal, eventually leading to stronger feelings of trust and bonding that blossomed into an actual relationship. The relationship was tested many times along their path, as Airell's personal heritage clashed with Siegrun's beliefs, as well as the fact that Siegrun's people were highly xenophobic towards outsiders. When trekking into Flame's Berth, the two were nearly separated by Siegrun's father, Oisin, until they mutually agreed to leave the mountain for a time, vowing to return to change the Gabhatine whom were ultimately destroying themselves; a promise they kept some months later. .]] When in Highroost, Airell's mother Deidre held strong hatreds for those of Oakenborn blood due to a deep seeded distrust for their kind among some of the more traditional Galuyn clans; as it had been so deeply ingrained that the Oakenborn were to be seen as rats and traitors. Regardless, Airell and Siegrun persisted. While not married or bound in union, the two have become a family of sorts to one another, living together in the Gabhatine lands after Airell resolved to remain by Siegrun's side even as she took dominion over her people's well being with her father's exile. Together, they have also come to bear new life, with Siegrun giving birth to their daughter, Rowan an Gabhatine. The two of them continue to live together in the Gabhatine lands, raising their daughter while ensuring the Gabhatine's future together. Rowan an Gabhatine with Rowan nearby.]] A child with many names, Rowan an Gabhatine, Airellnion, Rowan Woodcourt, but to Airell, his daughter. She is a small child, even for her age, but she is healthy and strong otherwise. Like her mother, she holds a fair amount of attitude in the little things she does, but like her father, she is quick to accept affection and attention. The child was the means in which the Woodcourt-Gabhatine family was able to begin to mend bridges, as she seems to very quickly crack through Oisin an Gabhatine's thick exterior. Category:Galuyn Category:Blades of Greymane Category:House of Woodcourt Category:Characters Category:Gilnean Category:Human Category:Worgen